The Thing About Supers
by Eliza Darling
Summary: Tony's a pretty secure guy. His old friends try to question that.


**I know, I know, I should be working on the gazillion Reyux projects I have going on, but this has been on my mind for a bit! I've kind of been on an Incredibles kick pretty much ever since the second movie came out. Tony Rydinger is kind of my unsung hero?**

 **Anyway, have some college fluff.**

 **The Thing About Supers**

"Hey, Rydinger, get in on this!" Scott Parkinson beckoned Tony over from across the quad with his free hand, the other wrapped around cheerleader Cory, who boasted his varsity jacket over her shoulders. Beside him sat Jay and Mira, then Teddy and Laura, all forming a circle under their usual tree to eat lunch or hang between classes. Even after moving on to higher education, they still sometimes seemed to act like they were still in high school, still judging, still acting like the same old clique.

Given Tony had spent many of his high school afternoons scoring on the lacrosse team, he often found himself at their weekend parties and hangouts. Sure, they could be fun, but to Tony, now that he was no longer on any organized team, it all seemed to get a bit… old. Still, he hadn't really seen them since the last game. And when Scott wasn't drinking excessively he could still be fun. Shrugging to himself, Tony joined their inner circle, taking the grassy spot in between Scott and Laura. "Hey, guys." Tony placed his book facedown to his side. Hopefully no one noticed the book on Jung he just picked up for his Theories in Literature class. "What's up?"

"We're talking crushes," Mira said, then lowered her voice. " _Super_ crushes."

This made Tony scoot in closer. He ran a hand through his hair, which, yeah, was getting pretty shaggy (but to be fair, _everyone_ seemed to be growing their hair long, especially the guys), and licked his lips, curious. "Golden Age or current?" he asked.

"We're still going through the Golden Age," said Laura, the smirk growing on her face. "You haven't missed much."

Tony raised a brow. "Who'd you say?"

"Definitely Gamma Jack," Cory sighed. "It's that gorgeous, swooping hair."

Teddy rolled his eyes. "That's all about looks."

"Hypocrite!" cried Mira, chuckling. " _All three_ of you guys said Elastigirl—and you wanna tell me that has nothing to do with looks?"

"Hey, her flexibility only makes her hotter," said Teddy, throwing his hands up defensively. "Is it just me, or did she look even better when she was campaigning for legalizing Supers?"

"She probably had kids," Laura reasoned. "Her hips certainly got bigger. Wonder if there's any truth to that rumor that she married Mr. Incredible." Her tone suggested she was _trying_ to sound mean, but anyone could pick up the jealousy behind her words.

"And her bust," Jay added under his breath. He jutted his chin out at Tony. "You've been pretty quiet, Rydinger. Who's your Golden Age Super crush?"

"If he also says Elastigirl, I'm going to gag," said Mira.

Tony shifted uncomfortably, looking down at the grass for a moment like it was the most interesting thing on the quad. "No, uh… probably not her," he admitted. "I like Stratogale." To the more acute ear, it was easy to see Tony was lying.

No one picked up on it.

"Oh, good choice!" Cory piped up. "She kind of had a bit of everything: super strength, flying…"

"Talking to birds?" Scott laughed. "She's _all right_ , I guess."

"You know, now I _really_ wanna know who your current Super crushes are now," said Mira, changing the subject.

"The Dashing Flash!" chimed Cory, almost immediately. Tony finally looked up at her admission.

"Ew!" Laura chided. "He's _so_ too young for you!"

"Also super speed?" Teddy had to smirk at that, rolling up his sleeves. "That might mean he's too fast in… some departments?"

"Can't be any faster than you," Mira muttered, and unfortunately for Teddy, the whole circle heard, and started to snicker. Tony finally cracked smile, starting to feel a bit more comfortable, more into it.

Scott turned his gaze right to Tony. "Well, we all know who Tony's is," he teased, and that smile disappeared.

" _Ultra V_!" Jay and Cory sang, and the snickers that had just teased Teddy were now directed at Tony.

"What _about_ her?" Now it was Tony's turn to get a bit defensive. He pretended to pick a piece of lint from his jeans.

"Well… you always seem to be around when she's out doing her Super thing," Laura pointed out, nudging Tony with her elbow. "That can't just be a coincidence."

"Not to mention you can't deny how hot she is," said Teddy. "She's got that gorgeous, long hair. She even shows off a bit of skin. You know, like her thighs?"

"Is that all you care about?" Tony snapped, his hand in the grass balling up into a fist, pulling some of the blades with it. "It's really all just a coincidence."

"Even her saving your ass on what seems like a near daily basis?" asked Jay, raising a suspicious brow.

"You're not going soft, are ya, Rydinger?" Scott teased, poking Tony. First Laura, now him? "Not sure I'd be so comfortable with a girl saving me all the time."

Tony blinked up at Scott, assessing what he just said. "So, let me get this straight," he started, trying to choose his words carefully. "You'd rather be _dead_ than saved by a girl? Even a Super?"

The whole group fell silent, eyes wide.

"That's not what I…" Scott tried, but his words died on his tongue.

"No, but you think I'm not 'manly enough' because I can't do the things she does?" Tony sat up straighter now, reaching a hand up to shake out his hair. Maybe he should trim it, but Violet admitted she liked the way it curled around his ears. And he liked when she combed her hands through it.

"I'm sure that's not what he meant," Cory said, trying to shrug off Tony's question.

"No, I'm pretty sure it was," Tony replied, noting the flush creeping up Scott's cheeks. "A real man doesn't let an extraordinary girl save him every once in a while, apparently."

"No need to get so defensive," uttered Teddy.

Tony held his hands up, as he didn't want things to get _too_ heated. "Hey, I'm just saying. Real security in your manhood is admitting that you might sometimes need help. Even if it's from a girl. She's something special."

"You _so_ have it bad for Ultra V," said Laura, trying to bring it full circle as she nudged Tony again.

"Yeah, what's your girlfriend gonna say when she finds out?" Jay goaded, and of course, like _clockwork_ , there was Violet, making her way across the quad, her long, black hair almost floating down well past her waist. Long gone were the days of her dark pants and baggy sweaters—today she sported her usual high-waist shorts and ringer tee, confidence in every step she took.

Smirking, Tony grabbed his book and stood, wiping the grass from his knees. He met her gaze and waved. "You know, something tells me she's not going to mind that much."

 **The tragic thing is, Tony doesn't know he ever admitted he was pretty secure... manhood wise back in middle school.**

 **Will I make more Incredibles fics? Probably. Prolly just oneshots though, I'm pretty sure.**

 **As always, likes and comments are always appreciated!**


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